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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stock · net · swing · date · row · club · spell · branch

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. stock — shares
  4. row — to paddle
  5. spell — magic
  6. date — the fruit
  7. swing — in golf
  8. net — after costs
  9. spell — a short time
  10. branch — a division
  11. spell — letters
  12. club — for dancing
  13. net — for catching
  14. stock — goods
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. club — for golf
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. swing — to play on
  20. net — in sport
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. club — a group
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. swing — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com